In November the citizens of Monroe will be asked to make a decision as to who they would like to see represent the Monroe School Board. We here at MainStreetMonroe.com thought this would be a good time to ask those running to take part in a quick interview.

As of October 2, 2009 I have spoken to and was given interviews by Brett Guido, Michael Irwin, and Tom Leeds. I am awaiting Mr. MacDonald's interview.Thus far I have been unable to reach Leslie Stone.

You can look for me to post my interviews on Monday Wednesday And Friday. I want to start with Mr. Guido

.

Why would you be a good school board member?

I chose to run for school board to continue the progress we have made since forming our own district in 2000. I feel there are significant challenges that will continue with the current economic downturn, and he district needs community members that are able to make the very difficult decisions ahead of us in a responsible manner, maintain and improve the excellent schools here in Monroe, while being mindful of the taxpayer's challenges.

My involvement over the last 4 years in the school district has given me insight to how the district operates. It will allow me to continue working on what has been successful, and to improve on things that need work. Having two kids in the district also gives me the motivation to continue to search for ways to improve our schools and offer the best education possible for our students. I understand the challenges of being on the school board, and will strive to improve communications of the districts decisions and policies as the community requires it.

What's more important, academics or sports?

I believe education should be the first goal of the district and parents. A valuable part of that education is involvement in activities outside the classroom. Extra-curricular activities such as sports, band, theater, and the many clubs we have at the school builds character and teaches teamwork and life skills that cannot be taught in the classroom. I strongly support ALL Extra-curricular activities at Monroe. We win first in the classroom!

Compare and contrast Lolli vs Elam administrations.

The administrations are very different, and are not easily compared. Mr. Elam had the challenge of starting a district from scratch, and building much of the groundwork we see today. He successfully hired our staff, organized the community, and oversaw for the construction of the new school. The district will see the results for many years from the commitment he gave us.

Dr. Lolli stepped in and continued to grow the district to the next level. She has made a commitment to focus on improving academic standards at Monroe, and is just steps away from helping us achieve an Excellent rating from the State of Ohio. She has reorganized much of our budget and improved our spending and continues to search for new funding options that ease the impact to our residents. Our sports and music programs continue to grow as well from her efforts.

How sound is the school district financially? Why are you in favor of the Levy?

Our district is no different than any other district in Ohio. Until serious changes are made to the current funding model that our state uses, we will continue to have challenges to operate our schools. The new substitute levy option eases the uncertainty of future levies, and brings much needed new money from the commercial and residential growth we will see in the future. It does not solve all of our problems, but will definitely bring much needed additional money to the district with less stress on our current taxes.

What are your thoughts regarding the proposed Coke making facility (Suncoke)?

I think this is a question best suited for the candidates seeking a seat on our City Council. I am not sure the School Board will have any say in this matter.

Do you believe in communicating to the community thru blogs, discussion threads or other internet based communication? Do you have a website?

Improving communication from the district is one of my main goals, so I believe participation on some of these forums can be helpful if used in the correctly. General concerns and questions can be discussed, but I feel that contact directly to the administration and board members should be the first place to go to for specific concerns. We have all seen situations that could have easily been resolved had the district been made aware of the issue first. My participation on line would be on a case by case basis, but I would prefer direct contact first, to ensure no miss-communication.